Reversal of sterilisation by the railroad technique

Objective To show that a simple, easily learned and relatively inexpensive method of reversal of sterilisation provides good results.
Design Retrospective observational study.
Setting An NHS Trust Hospital.
Sample Sixty-seven women aged 19 to 39 years who underwent reversal of sterilisation between January 1984 and December 1993.
Main outcome measures Pregnancy rate following reversal; rate of ectopic pregnancy.
Results Thirty-four women (51%) had intrauterine pregnancies after reversal of sterilisation; intrauterine pregnancy rate in women who had been sterilised with rings or clips was 64%. Five women (7.5%) had ectopic pregnancies.
Conclusion This technique provides results that compare favourably with those of microsurgery. It offers hope to couples who do not meet the restrictive criteria for microsurgery and in vitro fertilisation and should appeal to purchasing authorities.